After losing its first Western Province Grand Challenge (WPGC) match in three seasons a few weeks ago, the Steinhoff Maties Hockey men's team got back on the winning track this past weekend by beating Fish Hoek 5-1.
Goals were scored by Keenan Horne (2), James Drummond and Reece Arendse (2).
Maties are currently second on the log behind WPCC. They have played nine games: won five, drew three and lost one.
Captain Dylan Swanepoel is not completely satisfied with the way his team has been performing in the WPGC.
"We have been very inconsistent. We have a young team, but that is not an excuse. We have put plenty of hours into our training and we need to reward ourselves better for all the hard work we do by being more consistent."
One of the biggest league games thus far was against WPCC. Maties were 1-3 down with only a few minutes left to play and finally scored the equalising goal with 20 seconds left on the clock.
"We didn't play well in this game but we showed great character and mental strength to get a draw by scoring in the last few seconds."
Swanepoel explained that there were a few players struggling with injuries at the time and that they didn't play that game with a full squad.
He wants his team to be more consistent and not be overwhelmed by the pressure of being three-time defending champions.
"There is definitely some pressure, but we know we are a totally new team compared to the last few seasons, so there is no expectation for us to 'defend' the league. We are rebuilding the first team after having lost so many experienced players and we understand that things won't be the same as in previous few years. However, we are still doing everything possible to make sure we give ourselves the best chance at winning the league again."
This is Swanepoel's second season as captain of Maties.
"It is special to captain such a talented bunch of players. We have a great group of guys in the team and I really enjoy the responsibility."
Next up for Maties is the USSA tournament in Johannesburg from 4-8 July. Their next WPCG game is on 20 July against Vics (currently fourth on the log).
